


What We've Lost

by skinandbones



Series: Was calling out for help, but heard no noise [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, M/M, Survival
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-13
Updated: 2016-08-13
Packaged: 2018-08-08 10:34:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7754365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skinandbones/pseuds/skinandbones
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After their ship crashed into a Galra-controlled planet, Lance and Keith are on the run from the enemy. Without help, both of them rely on each other to survive this hell hole.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What We've Lost

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, welcome to another fic of mine!
> 
> This idea came from We Move Like the Ocean fic where "#72 was advancing the human race by finding another sustainable planet like Earth. Both Lance and Keith were chosen to lead two teams to search for them but the mission ended in a failure" so I based it off of that.
> 
> This story will be in a collection of one-shots so please subscribe it for more! We'll see how it'll work out because I'm pretty sure I would love for them to survive. Somehow and try to expand more details on this. *sweats*

The ship crashed. The remainder of the team was dead, leaving Lance and Keith the only survivors. Their communication systems were fried and it was impossible to fix the ship unless they had some spare parts but difficult when they had the Galra chasing after them.

They salvaged whatever they can and moved. Away from the wreckage and smoke.

It wasn't long until they left their safe spot, away from the enemy’s position. Hoping to stay far away from the Galra sentries scoping the perimeter. At times, they fought back, trying to slow them down and maintain a safe distance, running when necessary. The enemy was on high alert and Lance knew they couldn’t stay in one area for too long so they kept moving and moving.

The land was dry, full of endless dirt and sand but surrounded with rocky terrains of plants thriving in places one might think it wasn’t possible. It was easy for Lance and Keith to stay behind cover, especially in areas hidden from drones flying high above them.

A few smaller ships flew passed them, giving them another day to survive a little longer but who knew how long before reinforcements come to snuff them out.

The nights on this planet were a little longer compared to Earth but luckily, this world had a breathable atmosphere so even though oxygen wasn’t a problem, the whole keeping themselves warm was. They couldn’t make a fire because they didn’t want to risk alerting enemies with the light and smoke so they huddled together for the entire night.

Every night, Lance cursed at the Galra, hating them for destroying everything. He wanted to get off this planet. He was tired and his muscles ached. His mind drifted towards his home, talking about anything to distract himself. Even Keith asked him questions, anything to help Lance go through the night more easily. He asked about Lance’s family and his siblings, and Lance can go on forever about them. So many stories to share as his voice filled with love and adoration, and even bright smiles when he thought of his siblings and their cheerful laughter ringing in his ears. 

He missed them a lot. Even Keith got curious and wanted to meet them.

Lance looked at him, his face relaxed and with a nod, he promised to introduce him to them when they’re back home. He would love them, Lance said. No doubt his younger sister will jump on Keith’s back and his older brother will wrestle him into submission because it was his way of greeting new people. His mother would accept him with open arms and his father, well, he was a tough nut to crack because one can never tell what he was thinking. With a quiet laugh, Keith couldn’t wait.

Food had proven difficult to find after they went through almost all of their emergency stash of protein bars. Lance didn’t have much patience setting up animal traps because no way those little creepy alien lizards will fall for it, but Keith thought otherwise. Using little bits of their food to attract attention, Keith managed to snag one without a problem.

Cooking their victory meal mostly consisted of removing the organs and setting the meat against a rock where the sun can do the work for them. 

You’re just like my mom, Lance said to him once. She has good hands. The whole removing the organs and skinning the meat alive like it was nothing. Lance hated that, practically feeling gross watching her do it, and Keith took it as a compliment. He even offered to teach him how to do it. 

It was all in the wrist but Lance preferred a man doing the cooking for him.

They grew into this routine. With the changes of the sun and the chilly temperatures during the night, they continued to live.

-

“What is it you want?”

“You.”

“You already have me.”

“Well, a ship would be nice and we can get hell out of here and never come back.” Lance squeezed Keith’s hand, his head resting on Keith’s lap while he watched the sky above, the stars burning bright. Somewhere out there was Earth and one day, they’ll head back home. Screw the mission, it was already a failure.

“If we can sneak in and steal their ship then we might have a chance.” Keith said, pressing his hand firmly in Lance’s. 

“It’s too dangerous to go back there.”

“Maybe I can distract them and give you an opening to go in. Then you can pick me up after?” Keith suggested and received a hard flick against his nose. “Ow!” He pursed his lips and Lance glared heatedly. 

“No. That’s the dumbest idea and you know it.”

“It was one of many?”

Lance attempted to flick Keith’s nose again but Keith grabbed his hand, kissing the individual dips between Lance’s knuckles. It was enough to leave Lance a bit red. 

“I hate you sometimes.” Lance muttered without a hint of displeasure.

“And I love you too.”

“I’m serious though. We’re not stealing any ships unless we’re sure of it. We pack a punch obviously but I’m not all about guns blazing and creating a hoo-ha.”

“Hoo-ha?”

Lance glared.

“You’re right, you’re right.” Keith sighed. “Only if we’re sure. I’ll just dump the rest of the ideas into the bin. No worries.”

“Good.”

-

They got up when morning hits. Using the terrain, they hid in the crevices of rocks and used the heights to their advantages. When Lance spotted a few enemies, they planned their attack and took them down from behind. They robbed what they can and moved on. 

Keith was better at handling weapons especially with knives or daggers. The whole assassin persona worked well with him but Lance, on the other hand, preferred using close-quarter combat where it counted. Thank god for those defense classes he took. 

Lance didn’t like the idea of killing so Keith will do it for him. 

But how many did Keith have to kill before enough was enough?

Lance only volunteered to lead the mission because he knew both him and Keith were more than suitable for this. Who didn’t want to leave Earth and travel in space? They even talked about traveling the world together so why not travel the cosmos instead? 

They went over the mission of the possible Earth-like planets. Their goal was to gather the data with their teammates and see what they can find. 

It was simple in the beginning but when their small spacecraft intercepted a transmission, it all went to hell.

Nothing about fighting bad guys was in the memo. It was a mistake but with Keith by his side, Keith became his anchor that rooted him to the floor. 

It was a relief. Lance disliked staining his hands in blood.

-

When Keith screamed Lance’s name and the sounds of laser shots firing at them, Lance knew they couldn’t continue this forever.

They ran.

Their legs burned, steps trampled hard against the ground while their hearts raced like madness. Time wasn’t on their side. Lance provided cover, shooting the enemies in the legs and arms until Keith yelled about a cave entrance in front. Hurry, he shouted. They ran inside, soon the light slowly faded until they were deep enough to find an opened area of gems emitting a green light for them to see. The crystals were everywhere, stalactites hanging from the cave ceiling like icicles and various sizes of them poked out of the walls. It was strangely mesmerizing.

They walked along a straight path leading to another part of the cave while beneath them was an abyss, a deep chasm where one rather not find out what lies down there.

Curiously, Lance picked a gem the size of a golf ball and dropped it down below. A bright falling star and soon swallowed by the darkness. He didn’t even hear it land.

Lance tilted his head, listening to faint voices behind them and in front, were more tunnels with tracks leading to various others from above and below. Bulbs of lights attached to the walls to show the way. This place was a mine, an abandoned one. Its habitants laid dead and splatters of blood everywhere. The Galra killed them all. 

His shoulders fell at the sight. The simmering hatred for the Galra continued to grow.

“We have to keep moving. If we’ll find an exit out of here, then we’re good.” Keith spoke as he settled a hand over Lance’s shoulder before carefully avoiding the bodies as he walked. 

“Yeah, yeah. Got it.” Lance replied, his heart heavy with each step. He looked at the dead, all massacred, even the women and children. He found a mother holding a child in her arms protectively and the multiple wounds in them. It was cruel.

He swallowed and pressed on.

They didn’t deserve this.

-

The noises behind them stopped. It seemed the enemy didn’t want to risk attacking inside the cave. The possibility of collapsing the mine and all. It was good for them. 

Keith found a new area, a mixture of white and blue crystals embedded in the rocks. More stalactites and a small lake in front. Under the water was a floor entirely made out of crystals, reminding Lance of the ocean back home.

“If one of those bad boys fall on me then my death is on your hands.” Lance jokingly said.

“A pointless effort.” Keith replied with a straight face.

“Oh my god,” Lance snorted. “You didn’t…”

“I did.” A grin.

“You’re very funny.” 

Lance walked towards the lake, in awe of the lights cascading the entire bottom. He reached in, touching a crystal near the edge of the lake but when the tip of his finger brushed it, it swam away.

“Oh shit!” Lance drew back, watching what was a crystal but a turtle-like animal. Its shell made out of the gems and six legs scurried away into the deeper parts of the water where multiple crystals were Then he saw small beady eyes staring at him like miniature flashlights and Lance scurried away. He wasn’t going swimming any time soon. 

“What happened? You okay?” Keith made his way to Lance’s side.

“Note to self. Don’t touch the crystals. Nope.”

-

“You want go fishing in that lake for food? Maybe we can make soup from them.”

“Oh yes, just what I need. Some good ol’ crystal protein to get my digestive system working. Maybe some radioactive shit might come out of my ass too.” Lance said and Keith rolled his eyes in reply. “I’m not touching them and certainly not messing an entire legion of them.”

“I’m sure they’re harmless. I’ve seen one crawled out of the water before.” Keith explained.

“Oh yeah? Did you befriend them and told them we come in peace?”

“Nah, didn’t have to do anything because…” Keith turned to pick up the creature and placed it on his thigh. “This little guy came to say hi. Maybe we should call him Lance Junior.”

“Fuck no.”

Lance Jr. snapped his mouth together, its white glowing eyes blinked at him.

“He likes you.” Keith smiled.

“Hell. No.”

-

Thankfully, the creatures left them alone. It lessened the burden on Lance’s mind. They had enough to deal with and if they had to fight crystal turtles because they invaded their territory, well, Lance wasn’t going to have any of that. 

With their internal clock set up in their suits, they established a schedule. One will take watch every six hours. Keith took the first while Lance slept beside him.

But as Lance slept, little whimpers escaped his lips and he woke up to Keith calling out to him, pulling him back into reality. He saw Keith’s face. 

Lance rapidly spoke of the fires and death surrounding him as he held Keith in his arms when he died. It was terrible, he uttered into Keith’s chest. Lance spoke of home again and their apartment waiting for them. Keith held him tightly, stroking through the boy’s hair and whispering gentle words to sooth Lance’s mind.

We will. We’re going back home and I’ll make it happen. Trust me. A mantra. It was enough for Lance.

-

Another nightmare but this time, when Lance woke up, he found a crystal flower. Its petals reminded him of a daffodil and clear to see through. It was a diamond itself, shimmering with its own light. He gave it a twirl in his hand, admiring the simple beauty of it. He kept it close against him and lured him back to a peaceful slumber.

-

During Lance’s time to keep watch, he noticed Keith was a heavy sleeper. He wasn’t the type to snore. Once he closed his eyes, he was out completely. Keith needed his rest and every time he woke up four hours later, Lance insisted him to get more rest but the guy was stubborn and refused. 

In fact, they were both difficult. They agreed on that.

Lance saw how tired Keith was. The reds in his eyes, the dark bags under them. Keith was known to work without sleeping much and Lance couldn’t help but worry.

The little crystal creature came out of the water and made its way to Lance’s side.

“What do you want, little guy? I have nothing to offer you.” Lance petted Lance Jr. over his head. “Good boy. Don’t tell Keith but you’re kind of cute.”

The creature made a yawning motion with its jaw before its head and six legs disappeared into the shell.

“I’m almost tempted to take you home with me but you’re giving me the cold shoulder, huh?” Lance snorted to himself. 

“He gives everyone the cold shoulder.” 

Lance jumped and turned, finding Keith turned on one side with his back facing him. “Dude, not cool.”

“It’s cute too.”

Fuck.

-

Another watch. 6 hours were long but it didn’t last when Lance spotted the familiar colors of the Galra soldiers armed.

“Shit.” Lance quickly shook Keith awake. “Keith, Keith. Wake up, we got company.”

Keith stirred and quickly stood up, overlooking the scene behind the rocks. “They’re here already?”

“Guess they really want us dead.” Lance answered, his lip curled into a tentative smile. 

“They’re not going to get us.” Keith stated firmly. “Let’s go.”

The two made their move deeper in into the cave but the loud explosion caused the ground to shake. The crystals high above began to fall and cracks along the ground haunted them as they got closer. 

“Move!” Keith shouted.

“They’re going to bring this whole place down?! They’re crazy!” 

They ran fast without looking back, dodging the falling debris and making their way through the cave. The explosions erupted and their legs drove them forward until they arrived into another place where sunlight towered over the open area of the mine.

“There’s a ladder!” Lance called out. “Our ticket out of here!” He ran and Keith followed behind. They climbed up until they reached the very top but suddenly, they were surrounded.

It was a trap.

About ten soldiers pointed their weapons at them and a ship settled on the ground behind.

Lance hesitantly stood up, his hands up in the air in surrender. “Keith…”

“It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.” Keith reassured him without falter. He stared at the soldier in front of him. “What you want with us? We’re just travelers, okay? Friendly too.”

“Shut up.” The soldier butted the end of his gun against Keith’s face. 

“Keith!” Lance snarled. His hand raised to grab the gun from the soldier until he was pummeled into the ground face flat. “Man, fuck you guys!” Lance struggled against the tight grip bending his right arm behind him.

Shit. Shit. Shit. “Get off me!”

“Try something or your friend here leaves with more than a blow to the face.” The soldier responded. 

“That’s all you got? Heh, I’ve dealt with others worse than your kind.” Keith licked the blood right off the corner of his mouth. He was then cuffed behind his back and roughly dragged by his captives. He took one look at Lance, a small smile before he went inside the ship and Lance was pulled up from the ground.

“That fucking hurts, you dick!”

Lance was met with a blow to the head and all was black.

_Going back home seemed to be a faraway dream now._

**Author's Note:**

> Find me at ramblesofskinandbones (Tumblr).


End file.
